Worship

We are almost finished with our study of The Patriarchs, Encountering the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This is one of only a few of Beth Moore's studies that I haven't done before. I had trouble "getting into it" for various reasons. But, once we reached the halfway point, every word has been so applicable to life in general... especially relevant, however, in our current circumstances.

There is absolutely no way to study this first family of the Promise without noticing how truly dysfunctional they were. Honestly, there is no situation we are facing in our world today that wasn't present in some form even then. Throughout the scriptures, though, we see that God was adamant about keeping the covenant He'd made with Abraham regardless of the variety of ways they attempted to wreck their futures.

But, that's not my reason for writing today. :)

Early in the study, we spent a day studying the servant that Abraham sent out to find a wife for Isaac. All along the way, this servant was asking for the Lord's favor -- asking Him to guide him in his search. Of course, it was Rebekah that he eventually found. And, once Rebekah's family agreed to send her back with this older servant, the Bible records that he bowed down and worshiped the LORD.

WORSHIPED! The servant worshiped over the fact that God had led him to the wife of his master's son. He worshiped over finding something/someone that would not even really benefit himself. His life was so wrapped up in his master's that success for the master meant success for him.

And, here's the quote that I can't seem to get out of my head;

"I daresay God esteems the worship of no one more than that of a devoted servant, particularly one who is cloaked in anonymity and who is known only as his master's.

I love it! And, every time I read it, the phrase that rushes through my spirit is, "Please, LORD. Let it be so."

In this servant's case, his worship was literal. He hit his knees and praised the LORD. I'm not exactly sure what that looked like, but I know it was genuine. God had been so faithful to him that he couldn't help himself. He HAD to physically express gratitude for his guidance, provision, PRESENCE in his life.

Our family is presently worshiping in a church where outward expression of worship is abundant. It's not distracting to me. I love seeing the effects of God's presence in the lives of believers. However, a worship service to me is more of an inward experience. I love the music leading up to a sermon. But, there is nothing that brings me to the throne of God faster than the Word being preached. For me, a great sermon causes me to feel a little like Abraham's servant must have felt. However, I'd assume you wouldn't notice it on the outside.

When I leave that service or my time alone with God and He has made Himself known to me through music, His Word or something else, I HAVE to praise Him. And, that's why this blog is so important to me. There's no way I will ever be able to express how faithful God has been to me during my ENTIRE life, but especially over the past four months. My words wouldn't be enough. But, His goodness, His grace, His mercy, His guidance, His provision have been so very evident that, like Abraham's servant, I MUST express my gratitude through an outward expression of worship. And writing here has given me that opportunity.

So, even if no one ever read the words of this blog, I'd sit at this computer and write them anyway... as an expression of my gratitude to a God who is adamant and persistent in demonstrating His great love and care for me.

But, for those that do read, my desire is to MAKE MUCH of our God. You see, when I observe the hands lifted in the worship center, faces pointed straight upwards and HUGE smiles on the faces of worshipers, I often wonder what God has done for them. I KNOW that for someone to be THAT in love with the Father, He's made Himself VERY KNOWN in that life. Their worship has caused me to see the ONE worthy of worship.

Devoted servant.

Cloaked in anonymity.

Known only as his Master's.

In this small space of a huge internet world, God, may it be so!